Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-05-20
WASHINGTON.
Report Of the Agricultural Department
OH the Condition Of Crops IN
Texas for May.
More Attractions at the National Capital
Than Usual at This season of
the Year. 3
VIRGINIA ON A Room.

SAID gentleman from virginia tO-QAY,
"the future of the Old Dominion is as
sured. Within the past year there has
been a considerable influx of northern
immigration to the state, and there are at
the present moment several parties of
men representing northern farmers look
ing over some sections of the state, with
a view to the purchase of g number OF
farms for men who have grown tired of
the long cold winters of the north. There
are thousands of acres of valuable agri-
cultural lands which may be bought for
less than the cost of the improvements,
and the indications now are that within
the next few years Virginia will gain as
an agricultural state all that she has lost
since the war"
THE CONVENTION CITY OF THE COUNTRY.
Special to the Gazette.
WASHINGTON, May 19.-Although as a
general thing there is very little of inter
est in Washington during the long recess
between the adj ournment of one Congress
and the assembling of another, there has
been g great deal here this month to in
terest strangers as well as the regular
inhabitants. The meeting of the Ameri-
can Surgical Association and the hotel
men, last week, together with the Society
OF the Army of the Cumberland ana the
veterans Of the Sixth Army Corps, is To be
| followed next week by The national drill
On the last day of that event the Society
OF Mechanical Engineers viii assemble
here When they leave there are several
other organizations g Cune. Altogether
there are more attraCuons in Washington
this year at this time than there have
been for many years. Washington is rap
idly becoming the great convention city
/ of the country.
AN ACTIVE cec'&sUL.
Special to the Gazette.
WASHINGTON, May 19.-Among the
consuls appointed by President Cleve-
land there is none that has made better
record thus far than DR.. Heenan of Min
nesota, consul st Odessa. The chief
value of q consular officer to the govern
ment lies in his ability to, first, watch the
interests Of the United States, and Sec
ond, to intelilgently report to the State
Department the interesting features of
the country to which he is accredited. In
each of these respects Or. Heenan has de-
velOped great ability, and it is quite
likely that the result will be that he will
be promoted to e still more important
post. Odessa is an important sea port on
the southern coast of Russia. Its
chief article of export to the United
States is wool. There is nothing import
ed in this country in which there is so
much fraud as wool. The duty on wool
is not specific, cut is assessed according
to the value at the port from which it is
exported. The difference of a ceHt per
pound in the invoice, therefore, may make
q difference of several thousand dollars
in the amount of duties collected by the
United States. The Russian wool mer-
chants are not notedfor superabundance
OF veneration for the truth, and they nave
no qualms of conscience about defraud-
ing the United States treasury.
Naturally, it requires consul
with thorough knowledge OF
the people with whom ne has to
deal as well as e knowledge of the
markets, to cope with these people. DR..
Heenan has shown that he is just the
man for the place. Since his appoint
ment undervaluations of woods from
Odessa have almost entirely ceased. The
Russians have learned that the American
Consul is thoroughly posted on wool
values, and that it is necessary 10 arise
very much earlier in the morning than is
their habit, if they would get ahead of
the custom laws while the Doctor is
watching their markets. An official OF
the State Department says that DR..
Heenan saved the amount of his salary
to the government before he had been a
week at his post.
TEXAS NOTES.
Special to the Gazette.
WASHINGTON, May 10 The following
Texas pensions were issued to-day
Alfred Chandler, Mckinney; Joseph G.
Dunn, Grafton; Jesse Dougherty,
ScurrY; John Wesley, CIeburne; William
Douglass, Brownville.
In the claim of j. II, Baker of PaIo
Pinto county, Texas, for S1760 for depre-
dations committed in 1867 by Kiowa
Indians, the Secretary of the Interior
rendered finding of sly, and that
amount be allowed.
The Secretary of the Treasury to-day
Henry Tolland keeper of life |
saving station at Sabine, of the coast of
Texas.
TEXAS CROPS.
Special to the Gazette.
WASHINGTON, May l9.-The agent of
the Department of Agriculture makes the |
following report of the condition of crops |
in Texas for May: Middle and Southern |
Texas, which includes about one-nalf of |
the state, are suffering from drouth I'M
paralleled in its history for this time of |
the year. The oats and small grain crops |
axe almost q total failure, and without rain |
in the next week or ten days the corn /
crop will be as bad, and even with rain |
will be cut short. Cotton with the usual |
May rains will have time yet to make, al
though it will necessarily be late and have
to run the gauntlet of the summer drouth |
and worms.
Northern Texas, that portion of the
state lyingnorth of the thirty second par
alen line, has been visited with partial
rains, which have in g measure saved
their grain crops and will bring cotton
up. The Grouth has injured the oat and
wheat crops to such an extent in this sec
ton that there will not be more than
half crop except in few good coun-
ties, such as Grayson, Red River and
Fsnnln, where they have suffered very
little for lack OF rain. Corn in this sec
ton with q proper season may make G.
full crop. About three-fourths of the
area of cotton in the state has
been planted, of which about one-half
has q stand On the remainder the
seed is generally sound, and with
rain will come up. In addition
10 the intended cotton area there will be